NYMF Announces Submissions for the 2012 Next Link Project

The New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) announced today that open submissions to the Next Link Project, which guarantees production slots in the 2012 Festival, began on September 12th. Registration runs through October 31st and those who submit materials by Friday, September 30th will be able to pay a discounted application fee. The 2012 New York Musical Theatre Festival runs July 9 - July 29, 2012.

Twelve of the 2012 Festival's full production slots are reserved for participants in the Next Link Project, NYMF's primary writer service program. The Next Link Project empowers emerging musical theatre writing teams as both artists and entrepreneurs by providing the training and relationships needed to help them move their musicals from mere readings to fully-realized productions and to advance their careers by maximizing the exposure they receive in the Festival.

This year's jury includes director John Rando (Urinetown), director/choreographer Christopher Gattelli (South Pacific), lyricist Susan Birkenhead (Jelly's Last Jam), musical director/orchestrator Stephen Oremus (The Book of Mormon) and actress Ann Harada (Avenue Q). Additional jurors will be announced in the forthcoming weeks.

Authors submitting to The Next Link Project will need to provide a demo recording of their songs, a detailed synopsis of their show, a 15-page script sample (15 consecutive pages representing the heart of the show and including lyrics for at least one of the songs), a complete script, and, if applicable, proof of rights to adapt underlying material.

For more Next Link Project info and submission guidelines, visit www.nymf.org.

Next Link Project participants receive the following benefits:

• A subsidized production slot at NYMF 2012 (including savings in production fees,
discounted technical and marketing support)?
• Individualized support from a member of our team of Next Link dramaturges
• Seminars and workshops geared toward helping them successfully prepare, present, and
promote their NYMF production
• Access to exclusive industry networking events

Any show which has not received a professional New York production may be submitted by authors with or without industry representation. Scripts, however, should be ready for developmental production and the widespread exposure that NYMF provides. All entries undergo double-blind evaluations by several members of NYMF's reading team, with finalists referred to the grand jury.

NYMF has also announced the first round of shows from the 2011 Festival with sold out performances and added performances. These include:

SOLD OUT PERFORMANCES
Date of a Lifetime: 10/15 at 4:30PM

Ghostlight: 10/8 at 5:00PM, 10/9 at 1:00PM

The Kid Who Would Be Pope: 9/26 at 8:00PM, 10/1 at 5:00PM, 10/1 at 9:00PM, 10/4 at 5:00PM, 10/7 at 9:00PM

Greenwood: 10/6 at 8:00PM

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice: 9/29 at 8:00PM, 10/1 at 9:00PM, 10/2 at 1:00PM, 10/7 at 1:00PM, 10/7 at 5:00PM, 10/11 at 5:00PM. Limited seats are available for the performance on 10/2 at 5pm.

Matchmaker Matchmaker I'm Willing To Settle: 10/15 at 1:00PM, 10/16 at 5PM

Outlaws: 10/7 at 8PM; 10/9 at 4:30PM

This One Girl's Story: 9/30 at 8PM

ADDED PERFORMANCES

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice - Friday, 10/7 at 5pm

The Kid Who Would Be Pope - Monday, 10/3 at 5pm

Outlaws - Thursday, 10/6 at 4:30pm

Ghostlight - Wednesday, 9/28 at 4:30pm

NYMF also announced the finalists vying for title in its singing competition, NYMF's Next Broadway Sensation. The competition returns for its sixth year and will take place at New World Stages (340 W. 50th Street) on three subsequent Saturdays - September 17th, September 24th, and October 1st. Each of the first two rounds will feature ten contestants. Two contestants from each week are selected to compete in the final week by the judges and live audience, with a third from each round selected via online voting on BroadwayWorld.com. The lead sponsor for this year's competition, BroadwayWorld.com will also feature videos of each performance and interviews with the contestants.

Week 1:
Host - Andrew Kober (HAIR)
Judges - Tony Award winner Beth Leavel (Drowsy Chaperone), Alex Gemignani (The People In The Picture, Assassins), and casting director Michael Cassara

Week 2:
Host - Adam Kantor (Avenue Q, Rent)
Judges - Three time Tony nominee Marc Kudisch (9 to 5, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), director Stafford Arima (Altar Boyz, My Mother's Lesbian Jewish Wiccan Wedding), actress Stephanie J. Block (Wicked, The Boy From Oz)

Week 3:
Host - Sarah Saltzberg (Spelling Bee)
Judges - Two-time Tony nominee Gavin Creel (HAIR, Thoroughly Modern Millie), producer Ken Davenport

Contestants (broken up by week) are as follows:

Week 1 (Sat, Sept. 17) -- Audra Isadora, Cecelia Ticktin, Danielle Sacks, Jody Cook, Larry Owens, Lexie Papedo, Philip Deyesso, Rachel Flynn, Trenton Hulen, Tyree Robinson

Week 2 (Sat, Sept. 24) -- Alexandrea Tocco, Andre Softeland, Dawn Cantwell, DeSean Stokes, Erik Sisco, Erin Lindsey Krom, Hernando Umana, Jacqueline Nuzzo, Kristen Michelle, Liliane Klein

Now in its eighth year, the New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) is the largest annual musical theatre event in America and is widely regarded as the essential source for new material and talent discovery. NYMF provides a launching pad for the next generation of musicals and their creators to ensure the continued vitality of one of America's greatest art forms. Hailed as the "Sundance of Musical Theatre," NYMF discovers, nurtures, and promotes promising musical theatre artists and producers at all stages of development, and inspires a diverse audience through vibrant, accessible, powerful new work.

NYMF is the flagship program of National Music Theater Network, Inc., a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization. NYMF 2011 is presented in association with BroadwayWorld.com, Production Resource Group, and TheaterMania.com, and is supported by American Eagle Outfitters, Back Stage, BroadwayBox.com, BroadwayInsider.com, Clear Channel Spectacolor, Disney Store Times Square, FOX 5 New York, King Displays, NASDAQ OMX, New World Stages, Next Magazine, PMD Promotions, The Port Authority of NY & NJ, Queerty.com, Season of Savings, Terra Fossil Wines, Thomson Reuters, TheMenEvent.com, Times Square Squared, and Yelp. Major supporters include The ASCAP Foundation, BMI Foundation, Inc., The BWF Foundation, The Nathan Cummings Foundation with the support and encouragement of Jamie Ariel Phinney, Cameron Mackintosh Foundation, The New Musical Development Foundation, The Jerome Robbins Foundation, The Rodgers & Hammerstein Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and The Theater League. NYMF is supported, in part, by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the City Council and from the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

NYMF Memberships, which combine charitable contributions with valuable, flexible ticket packages and perks like early seating, and tickets to individual events are currently available for purchase at (212) 352-3101 or www.nymf.org.